A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
-
The Department of Justice on Tuesday indicted two suspects accused of vandalizing three pro-life pregnancy centers in Florida in June 2022, in the wake of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v Wade. Pro-life pregnancy centers, also known as crisis pregnancy centers, provide free services and resources to pregnant women, including alternatives to abortion.The indictment against the two Floridians accuses them of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which is also known as the FACE Act. The indictment alleges that their actions amount to a conspiracy to prevent the employees from providing services. They could face up to 12 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and up to $350,000 in fines. CNA has independently tracked and confirmed nearly 60 attacks nationwide on pro-life pregnancy centers since May 2022.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253464/two-florida-residents-indicted-for-vandalizing-pro-life-pregnancy-centers
Pope Francis has offered his condolences after 11 people were killed in a shooting at a Los Angeles dance hall, one of two deadly mass shootings in California this week. The pope sent a condolence telegram to Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles on January 25 expressing his sadness and assuring his spiritual closeness to “those affected by this tragedy.” A gunman opened fire at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park, California, on Saturday night amid celebrations of the Lunar New Year. It was the worst massacre in Los Angeles county history, according to the Associated Press. “His Holiness joins the entire community in commending the souls of those who died to almighty God’s loving mercy and he implores the divine gifts of healing and consolation upon the injured and bereaved,” the papal telegram said.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253458/pope-francis-offers-condolences-for-monterey-park-shooting
For the first time, Pope Francis has commented publicly about the scandal surrounding Father Marko Rupnik, denying that he intervened to help the famous Jesuit artist avoid punishment for the alleged sexual abuse of women in a religious community in Slovenia.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253454/pope-francis-i-had-nothing-to-do-with-father-marko-rupnik-case
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently warned that Japan’s birthrate — one of the lowest in the world — is not sustainable and that the ongoing population decline in the country poses an urgent risk to Japanese society. “Japan is standing on the verge of whether we can continue to function as a society,” Kishida said in Monday’s speech before the newly opened session of Parliament. Kishida, who took office in 2021, said he intends to launch a new government agency in April to support children and families. Kishida said he wants the government to double its spending on child-related programs. The prime minister noted that only 800,000 births were recorded in the country last year, a low figure that Japan was previously not projected to reach until 2030. It’s also the lowest figure recorded since Japan began compiling statistics on births in 1899.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253460/japanese-prime-minister-vows-to-take-action-on-declining-birthrate
Today, the Church celebrates the liturgical memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, close companions of the Apostle Paul and bishops of the Catholic Church in its earliest days. Both men received letters from Saint Paul, which are included in the New Testament.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/sts-timothy-and-titus-128